DOCSLIB.ORG

N Orsk Ornitologisk Forening

Total Page：16

File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb

Download full-text PDF Read full-text
N Orsk Ornitologisk Forening Report 3-2016 Survey of Lesser White-fronted Geese in Nakhchivan, Azerbaijan, in January 2015 Vladimir V. Morozov, Elchin Sultanov & Arzu Mammadov Norsk ornitologisk forening ornitologisk Norsk Survey of Lesser White-fronted Geese in Nakhchivan, Azerbaijan, in January 2015 Vladimir V. Morozov, Elchin Sultanov & Arzu Mammadov Norsk Ornitologisk Forening 2016 NOF-BirdLife Norway – Report 3-2016 © Norsk Ornitologisk Forening / BirdLife Norway E-mail: [email protected] Publikation type: Digital document (pdf) Front cover photo: Winter pastures and agriculture fields close to the Aras water reservoir, Nakhchivan. © Vladimir V. Morozov Recommended sitation: Morozov, V.V, Sultanov, E. & Mammadov, A. 2016. Survey of Lesser White- fronted Geese in Nakhchivan, Azerbaijan, in January 2015. NOF-BirdLife Norway - Report 3-2016. 12pp. All photos: © Vladimir V. Morozov. ISSN: 0805-4932 ISBN: 978-82-78-52135-9 BirdLife Norway – Report 3-2016 SUMMARY We carried out a field survey of wintering Lesser White-fronted Geese in the Aras water reservoir in the Nakhchivan Autonomic Republic in the period 20th-24th January 2015. We also surveyed the adjoining flood-plain area of the Aras River valley within Sadarak district near the border of Iran and Turkey in the same period. Only four small flocks of Lesser White-fronted Geese were located, of which the largest being 80 individuals. These observations together with tracking and location data from satellite transmitter tagged birds proves that the whole area of the Aras River valley from the border of Turkey to the Aras reservoir dam, serves as a wintering ground for the species. Considering their high importance, the wetlands of the Aras reservoir and the Sadarak district should be designated as a strictly protected area. The survey also covered numbers and distribution of other waterbird species in the area. Within the Azerbaijan part, more than 25000 individuals of waterfowl and shorebirds overwinter, which qualifies this important area to the list of important RAMSAR wetlands. 1 | P a g e BirdLife Norway – Report 3-2016 CONTENT SUMMARY ....................................................................................................................................................... 1 BACKGROUND .................................................................................................................................................. 3 Aim and objectives .............................................................................................................................................. 3 METHODS & MATERIAL .................................................................................................................................... 3 Itinerary ............................................................................................................................................................... 3 Study area ............................................................................................................................................................ 3 Survey method ..................................................................................................................................................... 3 RESULTS ........................................................................................................................................................... 5 DISCUSSION ..................................................................................................................................................... 9 ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS .................................................................................................................................. 12 REFERENCES ................................................................................................................................................... 12 2 | P a g e BirdLife Norway – Report 3-2016 BACKGROUND The Lesser White-fronted Goose Anser erythropus is listed in the Red Data book of the International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN), as well as in Red Data books of all countries within its distribution area. International research on Lesser White-fronted Goose (later abbreviated as LWfG) found that some birds tagged with satellite transmitters in their breeding area in the Putorana plateau stopped in the Aras River valley during their autumn migration (Romanov & Pospelov 2006). Two birds tagged in Bolshezemelskaya Tundra and the Polar Urals stayed there for the whole winter 2013/2014 (Morozov et al. 2015). These data proved the necessity to carry out further investigations in the Aras River valley to clarify its importance as a wintering ground for LWfG. Aim and objectives To pursue this aim, Birds Russia in collaboration with Azerbaijan Ornithological Society and Institute of Bioresources of Nakhchivan section of Azerbaijan National Academy of Science carried out a pilot study of the Aras reservoir and the Aras River valley in Nakhchivan Autonomic Republic. The main objective was to gather information on the wintering of LWfG as well as the numbers and distribution of other waterbird species in that area. METHODS & MATERIAL Itinerary We carried out a survey for wintering LWfG in the Aras reservoir in the Nakhchivan Autonomic Republic and the adjoining floodplain area of the Aras River valley within Sadarak district near the border of Azerbaijan and Turkey (Figure 1) in the period 20th-24th January 2015. Study area The Aras reservoir was created in 1972, and is located on the boundary between the Islamic Republic of Iran and Nakhchivan Autonomous Republic of Azerbaijan (Figure 1). The coast of the reservoir is situated 10 km to the south and south-west from Nakhchivan city, the capital of Nakhchivan Autonomous Republic of Azerbaijan. The Aras reservoir is located at an altitude of 777m asl. The total area of the reservoir is 14,500 hectares, with a length and width of 52 km and 6.1 km respectively. The maximum depth is 18.2 meters. The reservoir was created for electric energy production and for agricultural irrigation in both countries. The lowland areas at 100-500 meters from the coastline of the reservoir are occupied by winter pastures and agriculture fields (see photo on the front cover of the report). The Azerbaijan part of the Aras reservoir has status as a Governemental Nature Refuge. The climate of the Aras River valley is warm and temperate. The summers are dry and hot. The middle temperatures in spring are +10 - +22°C, in summer +18 - +22°C and in winter-5 - -11°C. Minimal air temperature in winter can be as low as -30 - -32°C. In such cold winters only a small area of the reservoir (about 3-5 hectares) remains free of ice. The natural vegetation in the study area is semi-desert. Survey method The Aras reservoir was surveyed by driving along the coast and counting birds at chosen sites within the water body and the coastline. GPS was used to locate the borders of the counting sectors. 3 | P a g e BirdLife Norway – Report 3-2016 We carried out the bird counts in the first half of the day from sunrise to noon. Later in the afternoon, the counting ceased due to air refraction and unfavorable light conditions. 10х magnification binoculars and 20-60х magnification telescopes were used. Every bird congregation was counted once or twice by three people. The total for each congregation was calculated as an average of these counts. In two cases bird gatherings on water were counted by two people, while the birds located in the adjoining fields and pastures were counted by the third person. The results of counts were summed for each sector and for the whole area. If the light conditions or density of goose flocks did not allow reliable identification of presence of LWfG or species composition with binoculars, a digital camera with 50x zoom and a digital SLR camera with 400mm lens were used. Figure 1. Location and map of Nakhchivan Autonomic Republic. Surveyed areas where LWfG were found are shown in pink. 4 | P a g e BirdLife Norway – Report 3-2016 RESULTS Data from satellite transmitter tracking in previous years showed that LWfG were confined mainly to two areas within the Aras River valley (Figures 1 & 4). The first area is located within Sadarak district and consisted of vast damp low-grass meadows, nourished with water from the canal in the widest part of the Aras River valley (Figures 2 & 4). Within these meadows on the bank of the canal, a flock of grazing geese was spotted on 20th January. It consisted of 202 Greater White-fronted Goose Anser albifrons (later referred to as GWfG) and 11 LWfG of which the latter represented 5.1% of the total numbers. The weather conditions were good and allowed not only counts and proper identification of all geese, but we could also confirm that there were were no transmitter-tagged birds among them. Further analysis of the information obtained through satellite transmitters confirmed the fact that tagged birds stayed in Aras reservoir at the same time. During the second investigation of the area on 24th January, we discovered that the geese stayed within the same habitat and grazed at the same place as on 20th January. The total flock size was 233 geese, of which 11 were LWfG probably the same birds as on 20th January) and 222 GWfG. LWfG accounted for 4.7% of the geese present. Interestingly, at the beginning of the day, there were 120 geese, 3 of which were identified as LWfG, but 30 minutes later another flock of 110-115 geese arrived from a distant part of the meadow and joined the flock. After that,
Load more

Recommended publications
  • A Descriptive Study of Social and Economic Conditions
    55 LIFE IN NAKHICHEVAN AUTONOMOUS REPUBLIC: A descriptive study of social and economic conditions Supported by UNDP/ILO Ayse Kudat Senem Kudat Baris Sivri Social Assessment, LLC July 15, 2002 55 56 TABLE OF CONTENTS Summary and Next Steps Preface Characteristics of the Region History Governance Demographics Household Demographics and Employment Conditions Employment/ Unemployment Education Economic Assessment Government Expenditures NAR’s Economic Statistics Household Expenditure Structure Income Structure Housing Conditions Determinants of Welfare Agriculture Sector in NAR Water Electricity Financing Feed for Livestock Magnitude of Land Holding Subsidies Markets NAR Region District By District Infrastructure Sector Energy Power Generation Natural Gas Project Water Supply Transportation Social Infrastructure 56 57 Health Education Enterprise Sector People’s Priorities Issues Relating to Income Generation Trust and Vision Money and Banking Community Development ARRA Damage Assessment for the Region Other Donor Activities 57 58 Summary and Next Steps The 354,000 people who live in the Nakhichevan Autonomous Republic (NAR) present a unique development challenge for the Government of Azerbaijan and for the international community. Cut off and blockaded from the rest of Azerbaijan as a result of the conflict with Armenia, their traditional economic structure and markets destroyed by the collapse of the former Soviet Union, their physical and social infrastructure hampered by a decade or more of lack of maintenance and rehabilitation funding, NAR’s present status is worse than much of the rest of the country and its prospects for the future require imagination and innovative thinking. This report deals with the challenges of NAR today and what peoples’ priorities are for the future.
    [Show full text]
  • Full-Text of General Report
    CPT/Inf (2007) 39 European Committee for the Prevention of Torture and Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment (CPT) 17th General Report on the CPT's activities covering the period 1 August 2006 to 31 July 2007 Strasbourg, 14 September 2007 The CPT is required to draw up every year a general report on its activities, which is published. This 17th General Report, as well as previous general reports and other information about the work of the CPT, may be obtained from the Committee's Secretariat or from its website: Secretariat of the CPT Council of Europe F-67075 Strasbourg Cedex, France Tel: +33 (0)3 88 41 20 00 Fax: +33 (0)3 88 41 27 72 E-mail: [email protected] Web: http://www.cpt.coe.int CPT: 17TH GENERAL REPORT 3 TABLE OF CONTENTS Page PREFACE................................................................................................................................................................ 5 ACTIVITIES DURING THE PERIOD 1 AUGUST 2006 TO 31 JULY 2007 ............................................... 6 Visits ....................................................................................................................................................... 6 Meetings and working methods .............................................................................................................. 9 Publications........................................................................................................................................... 10 ORGANISATIONAL MATTERS ....................................................................................................................
    [Show full text]
  • To My Father, Nüsret SADIGBEYLİ
    View metadata, citation and similar papers at core.ac.uk brought to you by CORE provided by Bilkent University Institutional Repository To my father, Nüsret SADIGBEYLÝ STABILITY IN THE SOUTH CAUCASUS: THE ROLE OF RUSSIA AND TURKEY THE INSTITUTE OF ECONOMICS AND SOCIAL SCIENCES OF BILKENT UNIVERSITY BY ROVSHAN SADIGBEYLI IN PARTIAL FULFILLMENT OF THE REQUIREMENTS FOR THE DEGREE OF MASTER OF ARTS IN INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS DEPARTMENT OF INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS BILKENT UNIVERSITY ANKARA AUGUST 2002 I certify that I have read this thesis and have found that it is fully adequate, in scope and in quality, as a thesis for the degree of Master of Arts in International Relations. Prof. Dr. ALİ L. KARAOSMANOĞLU Thesis Supervisor I certify that I have read this thesis and have found that it is fully adequate, in scope and in quality, as a thesis for the degree of Master of Arts in International Relations. Assistant Prof. GÜLGÜN TUNA Examining Committee Member I certify that I have read this thesis and have found that it is fully adequate, in scope and in quality, as a thesis for the degree of Master of Arts in International Relations. Dr. AYLİN GÜNEY Examining Committee Member Approval of the Institute of Economics and Social Sciences Prof. Dr. KÜRŞAT AYDOĞAN Director ABSTRACT STABILITY IN THE SOUTH CAUCASUS: THE ROLE OF RUSSIA AND TURKEY Rovshan SADIGBEYLI M.A., International Relations Supervisor: Prof. Dr. Ali L. Karaosmanoğlu August 2002 Numerous ethnic and territorial conflicts that re-emerged after the demise of the Soviet Union are the primary factors that beset the long-term stability in the post-Soviet space and particularly in the South Caucasus.
    [Show full text]
  • Administrative Territorial Divisions in Different Historical Periods
    Administrative Department of the President of the Republic of Azerbaijan P R E S I D E N T I A L L I B R A R Y TERRITORIAL AND ADMINISTRATIVE UNITS C O N T E N T I. GENERAL INFORMATION ................................................................................................................. 3 II. BAKU ....................................................................................................................................................... 4 1. General background of Baku ............................................................................................................................ 5 2. History of the city of Baku ................................................................................................................................. 7 3. Museums ........................................................................................................................................................... 16 4. Historical Monuments ...................................................................................................................................... 20 The Maiden Tower ............................................................................................................................................ 20 The Shirvanshahs’ Palace ensemble ................................................................................................................ 22 The Sabael Castle .............................................................................................................................................
    [Show full text]
  • Survey of Lesser White-Fronted Goose Anser Erythropus in Nakhchivan Of
    Journal of Entomology and Zoology Studies 2017; 5(5): 1062-1066 E-ISSN: 2320-7078 P-ISSN: 2349-6800 Survey of lesser white-fronted goose Anser JEZS 2017; 5(5): 1062-1066 © 2017 JEZS erythropus in Nakhchivan of Azerbaijan during Received: 20-07-2017 Accepted: 21-08-2017 20-24 January 2015 Arzu Mammadov Institute of Bioresources Nakhcivan Department of NAS Arzu Mammadov of Azerbaijan Nakhchivan AZ. str. Babek Abstract A field survey of the Aras water reservoir within Nakhchivan Autonomic Republic and the adjoining flood-plain area of the Aras River valley within Sadarak district near the border of Iran and Turkey was carried out i 20-24 January 2015. Only four small flocks of Lesser White-fronted Geese were located, of which the biggest being 80 individuals. However, these observations together with tracking and location data on satellite transmitter tagged birds proves that at least for the LWfG the whole area of the Aras River valley from the border of Turkey to the Aras reservoir dam serves as a wintering ground. Considering their high significance, the wetlands of the Aras reservoir and Sadarak district should be assigned the status of highly protected area. The survey also covered the numbers and distribution of other water bird species in the area. Within Azerbaijan part, more than 25000 waterfowl and shorebirds winters, which qualifies this important area to the list of important RAMSAR wetlands. Keywords: Nakhchivan Autonomous Republic, ornithofauna, Aras reservoir, Anser erythropus, species Introduction The Lesser White-fronted Goose Anser erythropus is listed in the Red Data book of IUCN as well as in Red Data books of all countries within its distribution area.
    [Show full text]
  • Karabakh Is Azerbaijan!
    Karabakh is Azerbaijan! Karabakh is ancestral Azerbaijani land, one of its historical regions. Musa MARJANLI The name of this region translates into Russian as a “black garden”. Editor-in-Chief According to another version, it is a “large garden” or a “dense garden”. Up until the region was seized by the Russian Empire at the beginning of the 19th century, Karabakh was part of various Azerbaijani states. I will not bore you with arguments about who lived in Karabakh, who ruled it in certain historical periods – materials about that are available in most of the previous issues of IRS-Heritage. I only want to note that until the beginning of the 20th century, there was not a single Armenian ruler in Karabakh and indeed on the territory of present-day Armenia. This fact is graphic evidence that the Armenians always constituted an insignificant part of the population of these regions. On 14 May 1805, the ruler of the Karabakh Khanate, Ibrahim Khan, and the commander of the Russian troops, Prince P. Tsitsianov, signed the Treaty of Kurekchay, according to which the khanate was included in the Russian Empire. Subsequently, the Gulustan Peace Treaty of 18 October 1813 and the Turkmenchay Peace Treaty of 10 February 1828, signed as a result of two Russian-Iranian wars, formalized the final transfer of northern Azerbaijani khanates to the Russian Empire. Having taken possession of this land, Russia, striving to reinforce the Christian presence in the region, immediately began a systematic resettlement of Armenians here from Iran and the Ottoman Empire, placing them primarily on the lands of the former Azerbaijani khanates.
    [Show full text]
  • AZERBAIJAN's DARK ISLAND: Human Rights Violations In
    2009 • 2 REPORT AZERBAIJAN’S DARK ISLAND: Human rights violations in Nakhchivan Contents A. Summary .........................................................................................................5 B. Nakhchivan: Background and Political System ................................................8 1. A family affair ............................................................................................12 2. The economic role of the Family ................................................................14 3. The Nakhchivan clan: A driving force in Azerbaijani politics .....................15 C. Violations of basic rights in Nakhchicvan .....................................................20 1. The Media .................................................................................................25 2. Police brutality: An instrument to silence critics .........................................33 3. The practice of torture ...............................................................................37 4. Psychiatric Hospitals: “Curing” opponents .................................................38 5. Politically motivated dismissals ..................................................................42 D. The regime’s peculiar tools ...........................................................................45 1. Forced weekend work in the fields ............................................................45 Map of Azerbaijan with Nakhchivan. www.joshuakucera.net 2. Weird and unwritten laws ..........................................................................46
    [Show full text]
  • Nagorno Karabakh Geo-Politics: Interests and Politics of Outsiders
    The Nagorno Karabakh Conflict. Causes of the conflict and obstacles to conflict resolution. Item Type Thesis Authors Nikkar-Esfahani, Hamidreza Rights <a rel="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/ by-nc-nd/3.0/"><img alt="Creative Commons License" style="border-width:0" src="http://i.creativecommons.org/l/by- nc-nd/3.0/88x31.png" /></a><br />The University of Bradford theses are licenced under a <a rel="license" href="http:// creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/3.0/">Creative Commons Licence</a>. Download date 27/09/2021 12:21:20 Link to Item http://hdl.handle.net/10454/5650 University of Bradford eThesis This thesis is hosted in Bradford Scholars – The University of Bradford Open Access repository. Visit the repository for full metadata or to contact the repository team © University of Bradford. This work is licenced for reuse under a Creative Commons Licence. The Nagorno Karabakh Conflict Causes of the conflict and obstacles to conflict resolution Hamidreza Nikkar-Esfahani Department of Peace Studies University of Bradford Submitted in accordance with the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy October 2009 Table of Contents Abstract ......................................................................................................................... vi Acknowledgments: ...................................................................................................... vii Common Abbreviations ............................................................................................. viii Introduction
    [Show full text]
  • Eastern Partnership Enhancing Judicial Reform in the Eastern Partnership Countries
    Eastern Partnership Enhancing Judicial Reform in the Eastern Partnership Countries Efficient Judicial Systems Report 2014 Directorate General of Human Rights and Rule of Law Strasbourg, December 2014 1 The Efficient Judicial Systems 2014 report has been prepared by: Mr Adiz Hodzic, Member of the Working Group on Evaluation of Judicial systems of the European Commission for the Efficiency of Justice (CEPEJ) Mr Frans van der Doelen, Programme Manager of the Department of the Justice System, Ministry of Security and Justice, The Netherlands, Member of the Working Group on Evaluation of Judicial systems of the CEPEJ Mr Georg Stawa, Head of the Department for Projects, Strategy and Innovation, Federal Ministry of Justice, Austria, Chair of the CEPEJ 2 Table of content Conclusions and recommendations 3 Part I: Comparing Judicial Systems: Performance, Budget and Management Chapter 1: Introduction 11 Chapter 2: Disposition time and quality 17 Chapter 3: Public budget 26 Chapter 4: Management 35 Chapter 5: Efficiency: comparing resources, workload and performance (28 indicators) 44 Armenia 46 Azerbaijan 49 Georgia 51 Republic of Moldova 55 Ukraine 58 Chapter 6: Effectiveness: scoring on international indexes on the rule of law 64 Part II: Comparing Courts: Caseflow, Productivity and Efficiency 68 Armenia 74 Azerbaijan 90 Georgia 119 Republic of Moldova 139 Ukraine 158 Part III: Policy Making Capacities 178 Annexes 185 3 Conclusions and recommendations 1. Introduction This report focuses on efficiency of courts and the judicial systems of Azerbaijan, Armenia, Georgia, the Republic of Moldova and Ukraine, commonly referred the Easter Partnership Countries (EPCs) after the Eastern Partnership Programme of the European Union.
    [Show full text]
  • Cultural Heritage Resulting from the Continuing Aggression of the Republic of Armenia Against the Republic of Azerbaijan
    Destruction and desecration of Azerbaijani historical and cultural heritage resulting from the continuing aggression of the Republic of Armenia against the Republic of Azerbaijan I. Essential facts 1. It is well known that at the end of 1987 Armenia overtly laid claim to the territory of the Nagorno-Karabakh region of Azerbaijan; that a number of illegal decisions were taken by both Armenia and the Armenian community of the Nagorno-Karabakh region with a view to securing the unilateral secession of this region from Azerbaijan; that shortly after the assertion of claims on the Nagorno-Karabakh region, under instructions from and with the blessing of the Armenian authorities, about 230,000 Azerbaijanis were forcibly deported from their homes in Armenia; that the process of deportation was accompanied by killings, torture, the destruction of property and pillaging throughout Armenia; that these acts were conducted on a widespread and systematic basis; and that, in all, 216 Azerbaijanis were killed in Armenia in 1987-1989, including children, women and elderly people. 2. Shortly after the Soviet Union ceased to exist at the end of 1991 and both Armenia and Azerbaijan were accorded international recognition, armed hostilities and Armenian attacks against areas within Azerbaijan intensified. Armenia unleashed the war, used force against Azerbaijan and occupied its territories, including the Nagorno-Karabakh region and seven adjacent districts, carried out ethnic cleansing of the seized areas by expelling about one million Azerbaijanis from their places of origin, committed other serious crimes during the conflict and established the ethnically constructed subordinate separatist entity on the occupied Azerbaijani territory.
    [Show full text]
  • Azerbaijan-Pa-Action-Plan-En 1
    Action Plan for Implementing the Convention on Biological Diversity’s Programme of Work on Protected Areas AZERBAIJAN Submitted to the Secretariat of the Convention on Biological Diversity [DATE 14.03.2000] Protected area information: PoWPA Focal Point : (Name- Sadagat Mammadova, contact details: {99412}5391111, Mobile: {99450}3704725; E-mail: [email protected]) Lead implementing agency : Ministry of Ecology and Natural Resources republic of azerbaijan Multi-stakeholder committee : not information Description of protected area system National Targets and Vision for Protected Areas (Insert national targets for protected areas/Target 11 of the Aichi Targets. Include rationale from protected area gap assessment, if completed, along with any additional information about the vision for the protected area system, including statements about the value of the protected area system to the country) Azerbaijan enjoys extremely diverse nature. The natural and geographical conditions here have provided for the occurrence of diverse flora and fauna species. Of the 11 climate zones 9 are found in Azerbaijan. This has played indispensable role in the formation of the country’s rich biodiversity. 4500 higher plant species occur in Azerbaijan which accounts for 64% of the Caucasus species composition. 240 of them are endemics and relicts.140 rare and endangered species have been listed in the Red Data Book of Azerbaijan. The fauna of Azerbaijan is represented by 99 mammal, 360 bird, 54 reptiles, 9 amphibian, 14 thousand insect and 123 fish species. 108 of them are listed in the Red Data Book of Azerbaijan. Until 2003 the overall area of specially protected sites was 478 thousand hectares constituting 5 % of the country’s area.
    [Show full text]
  • Report to the Azerbaijani Government on the Visit to Azerbaijan Carried Out
    CPT/Inf (2017) 12 Report to the Azerbaijani Government on the visit to Azerbaijan carried out by the European Committee for the Prevention of Torture and Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment (CPT) from 20 to 30 November 2006 The Azerbaijani Government has requested the publication of this report. Strasbourg, 25 April 2017 - 2 - CONTENTS Copy of the letter transmitting the CPT's report ............................................................................4 I. INTRODUCTION.....................................................................................................................5 A. Dates of the visit and composition of the delegation ..............................................................5 B. Establishments visited...............................................................................................................6 C. Consultations held by the delegation and co-operation encountered...................................7 D. Immediate observations under Article 8, paragraph 5, of the Convention .........................8 II. FACTS FOUND DURING THE VISIT AND ACTION PROPOSED ................................9 A. Establishments under the authority of the Ministry of Internal Affairs .............................9 1. Preliminary remarks ..........................................................................................................9 2. Ill-treatment .....................................................................................................................11 3. Safeguards against the ill-treatment
    [Show full text]